Program Description

Program Description The Urology Residency Program at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville provides five years of postgraduate training, including one core year of preliminary surgery and four years of clinical urology.

This residency program provides a well-rounded clinical experience that will expose you to all aspects of urology. You will become proficient in endourology, laparoscopic urology, neurourology, sexual dysfunction, the evaluation and treatment of incontinence, reconstructive surgery, urologic oncology and pediatric urology.

From a research perspective, you will have the ability to critically review literature, and design and conduct retrospective and prospective clinical/surgical trials after completing the program.

Benefits & Highlights
The five-year Urology Residency Program at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville is accredited by the ACGME and offers:

• Comprehensive preparation for a career in clinical practice or academic medicine
• A curriculum that meets the certification requirements of the American Board of Urology
• Close working relationships with focus on one-on-one surgical mentoring
• Extensive clinical experience with both common and complex urological problems
• A strong didactic curriculum that includes a variety of conferences, lectures and courses

Curriculum

During the first twelve months of general surgery, all residents spend two months on the adult urology service.

During all years of training, residents participate in the day-to-day operations of the service, which include active involvement in the diagnostic evaluation of urologic patients, pre- and post-operative care. You will accumulate surgical experience in both traditional open techniques and newer endoscopic/laparoscopic operations.

Clinical Training
The first year of urology is designed to train you in the recognition of uropathology and fundamentals of evaluation and management. You will become familiar with urologic diagnosis, the basics of endoscopy, and the management of the urologic oncology patient. The first-year urology resident is trained in basic operative skills and, receives an in-depth experience with the common and uncommon urologic disease processes. The urology (PGY-2) year concludes with two months of pediatric training at Nemours Children's Clinic.

The second and third years of urology (PGY-3 and PGY-4) provide intensive training in endourology, female urology, urodynamics, infertility, erectile dysfunction and urologic oncology. Four months of the PGY-4 year are spent in the continuation of pediatric urology. Rotations in urologic oncology offer significant exposure to patients with prostate, bladder and renal cancer.

The final year of urology consists of hospital and clinical rotations in adult urology. This experience allows the resident-in-training to mature into a knowledgeable, confident and skillful urologic surgeon who is capable of thinking independently, carrying out complex operations and handling office-based tasks.

Rotations
The preliminary-year of the Urology Residency Program at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville is devoted to rotations in general surgery and a variety of subspecialties, including:

• General and Laparoscopic Surgery
• Colorectal Surgery
• Vascular Surgery
• Gynecologic Surgery
• Urology
• Renal Transplantation
• Critical Care Medicine

This year provides you with a broad, clinical foundation on which to build your urology training. During the second year of your residency, you will be introduced to adult and pediatric office urology.

In your third through fifth years, you will assume increasing responsibility in caring for urologic patients, culminating in an appointment as chief resident in urology during the final year of your residency.

As a chief resident, you will be given as much independence in the management of patients as ACGME and Medicare guidelines permit. You will coordinate and manage all in-hospital activities of urology residents: rounding, consultations and emergency services. Equal emphasis is placed on endourologic and open surgical procedures.

You will be given considerable responsibility during your training. The large patient volume and wide range of urologic problems you will treat will enhance your experience.

Didactic Training

Clinical conferences, seminars, journal clubs and one-on-one preceptorships are all an integral part of Mayo Clinic's Urology Residency Program. These include:

Daily Activities

• Formal hospital rounds

Weekly Activities

• Resident Didactic Conference, focusing on the American Urological Association Update Series
• Resident in-service review, focusing on SESAP questions
• Pediatric imaging and pathology

Monthly Activities

• Urology Grand Rounds-Current Topics in Urology
• Pathology Reviews: Multi-head microscopy
• Imaging conference presented by and for residents and consultants; includes case presentations and reviews of excretory urograms, CT scans, ultrasounds and MRI's-staffed by GU and Radiology consultants
• Journal Club
• Genitourinary Tumor Board Conferences with Urology service case presentations

You will have the opportunity to take courses in laser technique, laparoscopy, computer training, microsurgical technique and basic and advanced cardiac life support.

Research Training
Residents are encouraged by their preceptors to conduct clinical research pertinent to their ongoing rotations. You may choose from a variety of ongoing clinical research projects in urology, or initiate ongoing or retrospective clinical trials.

Research projects involving human subjects must be conducted under the auspices of the Institutional Review Board. At this time, there are no urologic basic science laboratories on the campus at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. Yearly training in the ethical conduct of clinical trials is a mandatory experience for all staff and residents.

Call Frequency
Your call schedule will vary by individual rotation. Mayo Clinic follows the recommendations of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. On average, you will be on call no more than every fourth night and every fourth weekend. Currently, residents take call from home (with the exception of the preliminary surgery residents).

Committee Assignments
Residents will be given the opportunity to serve on administrative committees geared toward their particular areas of interest.

Case Studies
Case presentations in Clinical Pathologic Conference (CPC) style are an integral part of Urology Grand Rounds, Urology Imaging and Tumor Board conferences.

Teaching Opportunities
You will have the opportunity to teach Mayo Medical School students and visiting students from other medical schools through bedside instruction and formal didactic lectures. As chief resident, you will supervise junior residents in the clinic and operating room. You will also share administrative responsibilities. The chief resident may act as a teaching surgeon to the junior residents in less complex cases and will be responsible for the organization and management of the inpatient service.

Grand Rounds
Urology Grand Rounds are held weekly and are designed to incorporate current topics in urology, genitourinary imaging and uropathology as well as management, morbidity and mortality conferences.

Evaluation
To ensure you acquire a thorough knowledge of urology fundamentals and develop superior technical skills, your performance will be monitored carefully during the course of your residency training. You will be evaluated formally by your supervising faculty member after each clinical rotation.

In accordance with Urology RRC guidelines, you will meet with your program director at least twice annually to review your evaluations and discuss any issues of concern. In addition, you will regularly evaluate the faculty and program to ensure that your educational needs are being met. Your evaluations of the faculty and program will be conducted in a manner that ensures confidentiality.

Career Development
You will meet periodically with various faculty members, administrators and the residency program director to discuss your individual career goals. Mayo Clinic recruits many of its staff physicians from its own training programs. Thus, when you successfully complete the Urology Residency Program, job opportunities may be available at one of Mayo Clinic's group practices.

Additional Training
At the conclusion of your urology residency, you may wish to continue your graduate medical education at Mayo Graduate School of Medicine.

A post-residency training fellowship position is offered in a subspecialty area of urology. This fellowship emphasizes clinical training in all aspects of a particular subspecialty, but can be tailored to your specific career requirements and interests. The fellowship offered at Mayo Clinic is:

• Two-year Urologic Oncology Fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester

If you are accepted for the fellowship, you will continue to receive in-depth, daily, one-on-one training with a consultant. You also will have the opportunity to increase your own supervisory and administrative skills. Contact your faculty adviser for more information about this opportunity.

Faculty

The Department of Urology faculty at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville subspecialize in all facets of urology. US News and World Report has ranked the Department of Urology at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville #43 in their 13th annual list of "America's Best Hospitals" for the treatment of prostate cancer, incontinence and sexual difficulties.

In addition to caring for patients in their clinical practices, Mayo Clinic's faculty members are committed to teaching and facilitating the growth of medical knowledge. Many of our faculty have published and lectured extensively and are well regarded in their field. You will have direct access to these individuals throughout your training program.

Advisors & Mentors
The focus of urologic training at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville is in one-on-one mentoring by faculty.

Visiting Professors
Prominent professors of adult and pediatric urology visit Mayo Clinic each year as visiting professors. They present their work during noon and/or evening lectures, as well as participation in conferences, surgery and hospital rounds. You will be encouraged to take full advantage of these opportunities.

Visiting Professors in recent years include Inderbir Singh Gill, M.D., of Cleveland Clinic, William J. Catalona, M.D., of Washington University, Jack McAninch, M.D., of University of California at San Francisco, Andrew Novick, M.D., of Cleveland Clinic and David Staskin, M.D. of Weill-Cornell Medical School.

Appointments and Applications

Appointments to Mayo Clinic's Urology Residency Program are made through the National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) and the American Urological Association (AUA) Residency Matching Program for Urology.

Positions
Currently, there is one position available in Urology Residency Program at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville at the PGY-1 level.

Qualifications
Appointments at the PGY-2 or PGY-3 levels are rarely considered outside of the matching program for residents who have completed their PGY-1 or PGY-2 training at other institutions.

Applications
Applications to Mayo Clinic's Urology Residency Program are accepted through ERAS. You will need to submit:

• Official medical school transcripts
• Official test transcripts for all applicable examinations (USMLE, LMCC, COMLEX, NBOME, FMGEMS, FLEX or NBME)
• A dean's letter and two other letters of recommendation
• A curriculum vitae
• A personal statement
• A valid ECFMG certificate (if you graduated from medical school outside of the United States or Canada)

Applications for each academic year, which begins in July, should be completed by October 15 of the previous calendar year.

If you are considered for an appointment, you will be asked to visit Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville for an interview with the program director and selected faculty.

Interviews are conducted from November through mid-December each year.

Program Contacts

For more information, please contact:

Katherine Townsend
Urology Residency Education Coordinator
904-953-0490
townsend.katherine@mayo.edu

Mayo Clinic College of Medicine
Mayo School of Graduate Medical Education
200 First Street S.W.
Rochester, MN 55905
507-284-2220

If you would like to discuss this residency with Mayo Clinic alumni living in your area, please write to us for a list of their names.